Thank-you for showing an interest in me as a potential surrogate. I have created this page so that you can review my beliefs regarding surrogacy to see if we would be a match. This saves us both time, eliminating unnecessary emails and letting you get to know more about me.
To view my strong beliefs regarding surrogacy (i.e. abortion, amnio) click the daisy.
Thank-you for taking an interest in me as a possible gestational surrogate. Let me start off by saying that I am really motivated to help a couple have a child and share the joy that is being a parent. My name is Donna; I am 26 years old and live in London, ON, Canada. I live with my husband of nine years, Sharbel and our wonderful daughter Xaviere. My husband is 28 years old and is a supervisor for a security agency. Xaviere (pronounced zay-vee-air) is almost 17 months old and is the absolute joy of our lives. I have worked at the same job for three years first as a sales rep, then technical support and now back to sales...
Sharbel and I were high school sweethearts; we met at 14 and 16 years old and were inseparable ever since. We married August 9, 1996 in a small civil ceremony with just family in attendance. We had not been planning on having any children, but when I was surprised with my pregnancy with Xaviere we were elated and just knew that she was meant to complete our family. Our family enjoys being outside a lot. We enjoy walking by the river or various trails and going to the woods so Xaviere can cover herself in leaves. We also frequently take Xaviere to the Ontario Early Years Centres, which have books, painting, play-doh, toys... One of Xaviere's current favourite pastimes is visiting the wading pool and splash pad at a local park. She also enjoys Toy's R Us and Chapters the bookstore. Though I have to admit that I like the trips to Toys R Us probably more than she does!
When we have to spend time indoors we often take Xaviere to Adventures on Wonderland so she can ride the mini Ferris wheel and play in the ball pond. We also read a lot; reading has always been a passion of mine ever since childhood. I read anything from Charles Dickens to "Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams" to "Princess by Jean Sasoon." Xaviere loves to read, she will not even let us hold the books for her, she turns the pages and we read them. When she wants us to name things for her she takes our finger and places them on objects so we will tell her what they are, it’s so sweet. Her current favourite book is "My First Nursery Rhymes" of which she likes Incy Wincy Spider the best and giggles when we act out the words.
When we have time Sharbel and I enjoy watching movies. My favourites
include, Gone With the Wind, Schindler's List, The Shawshank Redemption and the Austin Powers series. We don't have time to watch much television, (DOH!) but our favourite show is the Simpsons!
We are also lacto-ovo vegetarians, we do not eat red meat, poultry or
seafood though we do eat dairy produce. Rest assured that we aren't
starving we eat everything other families eat. Today supermarkets offer
high-quality, healthy vegetarian food such as soy ground beef, tofu, veggie burgers, veggie hotdogs, vegetarian chicken cutlets, veggie soy ribs, vegetarian chicken strips, and the list goes on forever! We eat soy chili, shepherds pie, everything a traditional family eats just instead of ground beef we use the soy or tofu version. We also take vitamin supplementation and I took prenatal vitamins while I was expecting.
Sharbel's goal in life is to become a police officer, he has passed the
police cadet written and will soon be taking the physical. He did attend college for the Police Foundations program and graduated in 2004. Until he becomes an officer he works in the security field as a Supervisor for Initial Security. Needless to say, neither of us has a criminal record of any type. In 2000 until early 2002 I attended the University of Waterloo as an Arts Undergrad. I couldn't decide which field to major in and missed my family being so far away from them so I decided to postpone my education until later years. Looking back this is something I wish I had not done and plan to return to school as soon as I have saved enough money to return. I believe I will major in social sciences and history so that I can become a teacher.
I have lived in Canada since 1992 when our family emigrated from England. My parents and youngest sister have since moved to the US. Although not geographically close to my parents, sister and niece who live in Portage, Michigan we are still emotionally close and I can always count on their support. I feel very lucky that my family are all in excellent health and that we all have each other. I am also grateful for a husband who even after being a couple for over eleven years we can still laugh and be silly together. Xaviere has completed our small family and become a cousin for our niece, Amelia.
Sharbel is a very mellow person; nothing really gets under his skin. He has been a better father than I ever could have expected. He is fit, athletic and enjoys running, working out and playing games with his daughter. He is a WWII enthusiast and in his limited spare time likes assembling and painting WWII tanks and reading history books. He is in full support of my decision to help another couple by becoming a gestational surrogate.
There are not enough words to describe the love we have for Xaviere. She is a darling little girl who has always been very well behaved, but we have yet to experience the terrible twos so we have time to see! She loves reading books, stacking blocks, playing with her shape sorter, kicking her purple ball and playing with her favourite doll, Esperanza. Experimenting with play-doh, painting and crayons hasn't quite worked out for us yet; they just seem to be too tasty.
Xaviere is thoroughly good-natured and smiles easily, she has always been the very picture of good health which we are thankful for. Having had Xaviere has really given my life a purpose and at the risk of sounding corny I truly strive to be a better person and achieve more for her sake. My hopes for her future are that she grows up into a happy, independent, well-adjusted, socially responsible young lady who will be an asset to her community and enjoy the unconditional love of her family. Also, that she will have the internal fortitude to achieve any goals she sets for herself both personally and professionally.
Being a parent has been such a wonderful experience that it really saddens me that there are other couples who for various reasons are unable to achieve this for themselves. I believe that anyone with love, time, patience and the resources available has the right to become a parent. Race, religion or lack-of, political views, sexuality have no bearing on whom I would chose to help by becoming their surrogate. For me, the most important criteria in choosing to become a surrogate would be that the intended parents were simply good people who wanted nothing but the best for the child. I would want assurance that any IPs would not mistreat the child in any manner though I doubt anyone going through the whole experience of surrogacy would ever mistreat a child after putting so much time, effort and love into the deal.
Before the pregnancy I would of course expect to meet the future parents. It would be nice to get to know each other a little and discuss our hopes and expectations. They would even be welcome to come and spend a day with myself and my family if they wished to see if they really thought I would be the type of person whom they would want to share this wonderful experience with.
As for contact during the pregnancy I believe that it would be the IPs
special time so contact with me could be as much or as little as they were comfortable with. I would prefer a closer relationship as I feel that it would help the IPs bond with their unborn child. I think it would be nice for them to talk to the baby and read it some stories or play it some music of their choosing. That way they could really feel a connection, as if they were the major part of the pregnancy that they really are. Any IPs would be welcome to attend the pre-natal visits and of course be present in the delivery room. After having had my own child and having had practically the whole hospital see me at my most vulnerable I have little modesty left in that department, just kidding.
After the birth, I would love to receive a phone call once in awhile, a
Christmas card or the occasional letter or pictures, even a visit if the IPs felt so obliged. However, if the IPs were uncomfortable with this arrangement then perhaps just a card with one photo inside. If in the future the child expressed an interest in meeting me I would feel honoured. I would definitely be pleased to meet with the child and ensure that they were happy and answer any questions they may have.
Rest assured that I would have no interest in keeping the child I would
deliver. I fully understand that the child would have none of my genetic material and would rightfully belong with the IPs and their family. I have had my share of sleepless nights and dirty diapers and would believe it
would be time to pass the load, no pun intended, to the IPs. My life since having Xaviere has been the happiest I have ever experienced and I do not wish to change it in any manner. My husband and I both agree that one child is enough for us and we are more than content with our little family.
I do not believe that I would have any lingering emotional issues regarding giving the baby to his or her rightful parents. It would be such a joy to me to see that couple holding their newborn, one of those once in a lifetime moments. I also think that now would be a great time in my life to become a surrogate as my daughter is not even 17 months and wouldn't really notice that I had, had a baby for another couple.
Again I thank any prospective parents for reading my letter, I apologize for the lack of conciseness, but being a naturally talkative person there is so much to say. I hope that this letter answers any questions or concerns. If the IPs have any questions they can feel free to contact me by phone or email anytime. Whatever the outcome I wish all IPs the best of luck in achieving their dreams of parenthood. It is a little overwhelming to hold a screaming baby on no sleep, but just one gummy toothless smile is a greater reward than you could ever imagine. I wish you all health and luck in your future endeavors. If you would like to see photographs of myself and my family click the baby below:
A surrogacy site that I visited suggested writing a letter/essay so that prospective IP's could get to know more about me. so here is my essay listed below:
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